


Baby on Board

by DastardChild



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Kid Fic, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-12-04
Updated: 2015-08-20
Packaged: 2018-02-28 04:39:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,320
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2719052
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DastardChild/pseuds/DastardChild
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stiles was excited to be back in Beacon Hills. He’d been studying his butt off and he thought he needed a little study break. So when his dad called him demanding he come home right away, he was all for it. Of course he just thought his poor father must be lonely without him so he didn’t ask any questions. When he pulled into his driveway and saw his father holding a car seat he was vaguely worried and suddenly wished he had asked why his dad wanted him to come home.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Good Parenting

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own anything Teen Wolf or even Teen Wolf related. Seriously, I don't even have a poster.

“You’re not a virgin?”

“Honestly dad? I have a foreign newborn baby drooling all over my shirt and that’s all you have to say?” Stiles looked down at the small mass. All gums and soft skin and, the nose which was a carbon copy of his nose. The kid looked just like him, except the hair. Not that hair. That curly blonde hair did not belong to him… was his mom a blonde?

The Sheriff snorted, arms folded over his chest and leaned against the kitchen counter scrutinizing his son and his … grandson. “He’s not foreign Stiles,” he sighed slowly and leveled a very clear gaze on his son. “He’s yours.”

Stiles breath hitched. Was this really happening? He looked into the honey coloured eyes that seemed to be watching his every move. “Fuck.”

“Language!”

Stiles jumped, jostling the baby and encouraging loud piercing wails. “Sorry! Sorry!” He apologized first to his dad, then to the kid. The wailing just continued.

“I still can’t believe you’re not a virgin.” The Sheriff stood up straight and plucked the crying child away from his own uncoordinated son. “I mean, I knew it would happen eventually but I thought maybe 4, 5, more years at least.”

“Dad!”

-

Stiles was excited to be back in Beacon Hills. He’d been studying his butt off and he thought he needed a little study break. So when his dad called him demanding he come home right away, he was all for it. Of course he just thought his poor father must be lonely without him so he didn’t ask any questions. When he pulled into his driveway and saw his father holding a car seat he was vaguely worried and suddenly wished he had asked why his dad wanted him to come home.

When he stepped out the car the first thing that slipped out of his mouth was,

“Dad you had another kid?”

As he got closer he could make out the sleeping curly headed baby. His eyes bugged a bit and he folded his arms nodding in approval. “A blonde, wow dad! Look at you!” His laugh was cut short by the angry glare his father gave him.

“Stiles.” He ground out. “This is _your_ child.”

-

Scott, Stiles was relieved to say had taken the whole baby thing surprisingly well. He said he wanted to be the godfather and he wanted Stiles to name the kid after him which was obviously not going to happen, the naming part at least. But that also brought him to his newest problem, what to name the kid. He couldn’t just keep calling the baby ‘baby’ or ‘kid’.

He watched chubby fingers push away at the bottle he’d been holding. He lifted the kid into the air and squinted. “George?” He clicked his tongue. He was reminded of the monkey. His kid would not be named after a monkey. “Charlie…?” He hummed thoughtfully. That seemed like an okay name. Charlie’s…angels. Okay maybe not. He wasn’t sure he wanted his kid to be surrounded by a bunch of hot girls whom he could possibly impregnate. Oh, that was very fully thought out. “What am I supposed to name you? Can’t I just call you dude. Or spawn of awesome…Or Spock!”

“You’re not naming my grandchild Spock!”

Stiles pouted and set the kid down. “What about-“

The Sherriff cut him off. “Not Jim, not James, not Kirk.”

“Kha-“

“Definitely not Khan.”

Stiles was frustrated. Naming a baby was hard.

“Well, I don’t know what to name you…” he looked to his dad, “his mom didn’t say anything about his name?”

His dad gave him a look. Stiles could understand the look seeing as he hadn’t even mentioned the mom once since receiving the baby from his dad. His father shook his head. Stiles sighed, “Of course, how could she.” He frowned down at the drooling mess. The kid rubbed his chubby spit covered fingers all over the edge of Stiles old Batman poster, trying to grasp onto the coloured paper.

“I’m going to call him Daniel.”

His dad looked to the baby and nodded slowly. “That’s… a good name. Daniel,” he tested, “it suits him.”

Stiles watched the baby, his baby, Daniel, and he wasn’t sure what he was feeling but it was warm and nice and he thinks he’s going to call this feeling good parenting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everytime I thought of how this baby would look in my head, I don't know why but I would think of Daniel Sharman's curly ass hair. So I named the kid Daniel. It was either that or David. Expect chapters to be short and sweet and updates to be sporadic.


	2. Marshmallows

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own anything Teen Wolf or even Teen Wolf related. Seriously, I don't even have a poster.

Stiles pulled up to the Hale house. He saw the clean wood and the hardly aged brick and the wooden garden swings on the deck. That was a new addition, probably Lydia. He turned around and looked at his gurgling child.

 "Let's go, Danny."

 He opened his car door scooped up the bag of marshmallows laying plainly on the passenger seat and stopped.

 "Oh shit." He frowned. "Oh fucking damn!"

 He rubbed his face over and over again. "How could I just... UGHHHH!!!"

 "Hey!"

Stiles groaned lowly and watched Scott jog up to him. He immediately brightened at seeing his best friend; this was the first time he'd seen Scott since he'd been back. Expecting a brotherly hug, Stiles opened his arms, closed his eyes and waited.

And waited. And waited.

"Oh man, he's so small." He could hear the cooing in Scott's voice. He opened his eye and turned to see his friend pressing his hands and face to the backseat passenger window ogling his kid.

He huffed a bit. "Well, yeah.” Although he felt a bit jilted he was glad Scott looked so taken with his kid. “He  _is_ a baby." He closed his door and shoved Scott gently to the side to open the door and heft Daniel out, car seat and all. Scott looked down at the wide eyed baby and pouted.

He wrung his hands and shifted from foot to foot. "Can I hold him?"

Stiles watched Scott, he watched him very closely. He didn’t know Scott would be this eager to interact with Daniel. He knew that Scott wanted kids and that he enjoyed their company but looking at him now, Stiles could see just how much Scott adored children... Or babies.

Damn, at least now he knows who to call when he needs a babysitter.

"Yeah man, of course, you are the godfather. Just no eyes or teeth or claws and hairy business." He chuckled at the last bit. “Do you even know how to hold a baby?” he grinned at Scott knowing fully well that Scott had received almost a perfect mark when he had taken Parenting in highschool.

Scott did not chuckle or even titter or anything, he just looked affronted. "Stiles," He said in all seriousness. "I would never hurt Daniel"

"... I know that buddy, just a joke."

"Oh, okay." Bright smiles and squinty eyes again, his best friend lifted Daniel from his car seat and gently cradled him.

"Hey there Danny, how are you today?"

Stiles groaned when he heard the name. He had forgotten even though he had been fretting about it only moments ago.

Scott gave Stiles a look and inhaled sharply before looking back to Daniel. "What's wrong with your dad Danny?  Did he eat week old chili fries again? Is that why he smells so sad?”

"Scott, I named my kid Daniel. I – you, we call him Danny. We already have a Danny! I practically named him after Danny without even realizing it..."

"Yeah, I know." Scott continued to rock the child in his arms watching with a weak heart as the baby grasped at his chin and smiled at him with gums and spit. "Oh man, you are the cutest kid ever. Are you ready to meet the rest of the pack?"

"...you didn't even say anything!"

Scott was already heading inside the house making faces and smiling.

Stiles stood by his car frustrated.

-

When he entered the house, all he saw was Daniel on his belly on a couch and a shit load of his friends surrounding said couch with Scott, sitting next to baby glowing.

"Scott, you know that's my baby right?"

"He's adorable!" Lydia looked pleasantly surprised; she gave Stiles an incredulous look and then looked back at the baby. "Who would have known you could spawn something so cute."

He rolled his eyes, ready to reply with something smart and incredibly Stiles like until Lydia spoke again.

"What's his name?" her face was stern now, as if his life would be determined by his next words.

"His name is Daniel." it was Scott who spoke, lifting the baby to sit on his lap for everyone to get a clearer look at his face. He was being very gentle and even made faces when someone got too close.

Lydia nodded approvingly as if Stiles had just passed a test. "Well, Daniel." she smiled at the baby, her hair flouncing into his grubby hand radius. He reached up to grasp it but she was too fast and flipped it back over her shoulder causing the baby to make happy sounds as if amused by her hair tricks. "I'll make sure you're the cutest baby in all of California."

Damn, was he the only one freaking out about accidentally naming his kid after one of their friends?

"Stiles, are you okay?" Isaac squinted and scrunched his face. "You seem kind of weird."

He got closer to Stiles and slouched a bit to smell the new father a little closer until a slow grumble stopped him. He jumped back and whipped his head around.

"Isaac, don't. He's probably just having a hard time accepting the fact that he has a kid." Derek leered at Stiles, his eyes a little wild but every other feature seemed normal. Grumpy, which is technically normal for Derek.

Isaac nodded slowly accepting the answer before going back to watching Daniel with fascination.

Stiles watched Derek hover from the top of the staircase while everyone else ignored him in favor of ogling his baby.

"I named him after Danny."

Derek grunted and took a step down.

"Not intentionally, like I just thought oh hey, Daniel would be a good name for him. Then I called him Danny and it just slipped out and then I realized, shit-"

"Stiles!” Scott looked insulted, his eyes were wide and there was a serious frown on his face.

"What?"

"Language..." He whispered, gesturing with his head to the infant who could probably understand diddly of what was going on, much less what was being said.

But Stiles was going to be nice and let Scott play overbearing mother while he had the chance.

Allison must be loving this he thought. He looked to her to find her biting her lip watching the baby from over Lydia’s shoulder. That was weird. She caught his gaze and he didn't know what he saw, he would've tried to figure out what exactly it was, but she looked away.

Isaac inched his hand closer to Daniel’s curly haired head and before Scott could hiss at him Derek was gripping the hand.

"You need to ask Stiles first." He grumbled.

Isaac had wide eyes when he asked Stiles quietly, Stiles could hear excitement in his voice.

It hadn't occurred to him how much the actual wolves of the pack would be affected by his kid. They all seemed eager to have Daniel nearby or to feel his baby cheeks or coo at him. He suddenly wondered where the rest of the pack was, and if they would coo at his kid just the same. It was hard to imagine Jackson doing it or even Boyd even though he was a big softie. Although, at the same time, he could see it, even Derek was giving the baby a soft look.

Stiles nodded to Isaac, "Yeah man, as long as your hands are clean.” He hadn't thought much about the response it just slipped out. It seemed very parent-y of him. His chest warmed again, that good parenting feeling was back. He smiled slightly as Isaac fled; most likely to wash his hands.

He watched the household interact with his kid who just sat there and waved his arms making weird sounds with his mouth and spit. Who knew something so gross could be so endearing. He was so absorbed in the scene he had been physically startled at hearing Allison's question.

"So how did…I mean, where’s his mom?"

-

"Son," His dad watched him strap Daniel into his brand-new car seat. "We're going to have to talk about this eventually.” He pulled up a seat at their dining room table and folded his arms. He didn't look mad or anything, just concerned.

Stiles sighed. He looked at Daniel, frowning into the honeyed irises. The baby only smiled back toothlessly as if to tell his father that everything was alright.

Stiles sat down in front of the car seat to avoid looking at his dad. He'd already filled out all the paperwork registering Daniel as his child. It had been relatively easy, seeing as Daniel's mother had left most of the necessary documents in the ratty carseat she had abandoned him in.

"To be honest dad, there isn't much to talk about." He sighed. "I know you're probably looking for some crazy extravagant story."

His dad gave him a look as if to say,  _isn’t that always the case with you_ .

He smiled awkwardly, absent-mindedly playing with Daniels hands. "I just drank too much at the prom after-party. Then there was this girl. I don't even know her name but she was there and I was... there and then yeah."

His stomach dropped,  _yeah_ led to this girl becoming pregnant, him leaving for school unaware, her giving birth, writing his name on the birth certificate but not even naming her own kid. Somehow finding his dad and just abandoning her son... _his_ son.

She didn't even name him. Did she not want him that bad?  Didn't want to get attached? So instead she just handed him off to his dad? Why didn't she just... His stomach dropped, it had only been a couple of days and Stiles already felt incredibly attached to Daniel. He couldn't bring himself to think of his kid potentially being aborted.

"That’s it?" the Sheriff looked relieved and also partially saddened.

Stiles shrugged. "That's it."

His dad nodded, a lot of that seemed to be going on lately: Quiet acceptance. "You have a lot on your plate now Stiles, what are you going to do?”

His phone buzzed and he plucked it from his pocket.

PAPER TOWEL

         if ur still home, pick up some marshmallows on the way plz!

"Right now, the plan is just to introduce Daniel to the pack. Then we'll see where it goes from there."

-

"I think he was pretty disappointed now that I think about it... But he also seemed pretty relieved that his grandson wasn't part fairy or vampire or something. "

Allison gave him a look.

Everyone was giving him a look. Even Scott, of course that’s because he hadn't even told his best friend the whole story.

Scott brought Daniel to Stiles who was sitting comfortably in an armchair. Stiles tossed the bag of marshmallows he had forgotten he had the whole time and accepted his kid then watched the baby yawn.

"I knew prom got a little wild but I didn't know that it was going to lead to this." Scott wrapped his arms around Stiles, being mindful of the startled baby in his arms. Soon Stiles found himself cocooned by arms and warm bodies, he felt Daniel shift in his own arms.

Damn, this is why he loved his friends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I'm sure you noticed, Paper Towel is Stiles' codename for Scott, you'll find out why in the next chapter. I didn't expect this chapter to be so long especially because I wrote it out on my phone and just edited it on my computer. Uh, what else, oh yeah I completely forgot about the marshmallows. I also completely forgot about Danny. The second I wrote 'Danny' as Stiles' kid's nickname I went oh damn, fml. But it's whatever as you can see. Also... that's it. If you're still confused about this baby, let me know. I'll do something about it...
> 
> To be honest, this chapter seemed pretty filler-y right? More Derek next chapter.


	3. Euphemisms

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own anything Teen Wolf or even Teen Wolf related. Seriously, I don't even have a poster.

"So where's everybody else?" Stiles looked at the scattered pack. Some sprawled over furniture some posting up by the staircase, one in particular hovering behind him.

 Lydia gave Stiles a look. "I know you've been gone for a couple of months Stiles but it hasn't been  _that_ long. " she uncrossed and crossed her legs again.

 Stiles had no idea what she was talking about. He was about to say as much when Isaac spoke.

 "If you're asking about Erica and Boyd, they’re on one of their ‘nature walks’" He ducked his head and rubbed at his brows. "You know...to  _bond_  with each other."

 Ho shit. He forgot about those. Damn, "So they're in a forest somewhere, probably in Canada or something, having crazy werewolf sex." He summed up.

 Isaac sputtered and his face changed colour. "Tha-that's not what I said, at all."

 Stiles ignored Isaac in favor of watching Daniel doze off. "What about Jackson?"

 In his peripherals he watched Lydia suddenly inspect her nails for chips and imperfections. "Who?" She questioned; nonchalant.

 Stiles rolled his eyes. They obviously broke up.  _Again._

 "He's in England." Allison spoke; she was blinking at him slowly and discreetly shaking her head. Obviously the whole Lydia/Jackson ordeal was a little more serious than he thought. He shouldn't tread any further.

 "Okay... So what are the marshmallows for?" Very slick Stiles, he commended himself.

He sat in his seat and listened to his friends talk about dinner plans and the smores they'd make afterwards. He listened to them catch him up on events while he had been gone. It was a little sad, everything he'd missed out on. But what did he expect, that's what happened when you went to school far as fuck. He should've stayed closer to home, but he wanted space. He didn't know why at the time. He still doesn't really know why but he just wanted to get away. Find himself he supposes. So he applied to a couple of schools hours away from beacon hills and when he got accepted, he left.

But now he was back and he can't for the life of him remember why he had ever wanted to leave. The setting he was in now, the pack, the laughter, the support, this was… he couldn’t ask for anything more.

"I think I'm going to drop out."

The room went quiet. It just came out. Word vomit, he was known for his bouts every once in a while, this was no different. "Not like,  _drop out_ but like  _drop out... temporarily._ ”

Isaac scrunched up his face and tilted his head. His hand rose and waved about haphazardly. "So, you're...uh... dropping out for how long?”

Stiles hummed, looking at the baby in his arms. "A while, but I'm going to finish this year. I mean there are only like... 2 weeks left; just exams. I can do that and then... Drop out."

"So you're taking a break." Lydia looked and sounded a little peeved. "You're not dropping out Stiles. Don't be so overly dramatic. "

He wasn't sure where that came from but  _okay_ .

"Lydia." Allison gave her a face.

Lydia flipped her hair. "No Allison, I'm sick of people not understanding the difference between ending things and taking breaks. You can't just stop going to school like that. You started it, you made all this effort and what?" she shrugged, "You're just going to give up. Seriously?" she met eyes with everyone as if expecting an answer. Scott opened his mouth as if to respond.

"Don’t answer that, rhetorical question!"

Derek crossed and uncrossed his arms from where he'd been standing. Stiles craned his head to look up at him and silently sent eye signals that Derek should not say a damn thing. But when did Derek ever listen to Stiles, let alone anyone.

"What's your point Lydia?" It came out like a statement, not a question. Tell us the problem Lydia. Let it out.

It was quiet, only Daniel's soft breathing could be heard.

Lydia looked Derek straight in the eyes. "My point... My point is that you can't just make that kind of commitment. You can't just pour all that effort and time into something and just give up!"

"Why not?"

Scott's eyebrows shot up and Stiles was pretty sure he heart stopped. Was Derek  _still_  talking?

"Because Derek! That's what cowards do!  They give up and they leave because they can't handle it. Instead of making it work or seeing it through till the end they just give up."

“What’s wrong with just giving up? If it’s too hard then why not?” Derek settled himself down on an ottoman settled between Stiles and Lydia never breaking eye contact with her.

Lydia looked livid, her strawberry blond hair looked a little too voluminous and she looked ready to attack Derek.

"Do you think Stiles' school wants a coward like him?" Derek asked her. She seemed to calm down a bit.

Stiles however was a little confused. Were they still talking about him?

"No, the school doesn't need him."

Okay. Stiles was kind of cool with being used as a euphemism.

"So whose loss is it that a coward decided to leave?"

Lydia huffed at Derek’s question. "It's Stiles' loss. He's the one missing out on all the school has to offer."

"So shouldn't the school just coolly let go of Stiles?" Stiles could only see the back of Derek’s head but he was pretty sure there were some eyebrows involved in that question.

"They should.” She straightened up a bit. “Stiles isn't the only person to ever apply at that school. That school could have whoever it wants."

"So what's your point Lydia?"

She was visibly more relaxed than she had been at the beginning of the conversation. "My point... Is that," she looked at Stiles sternly. "Stiles can take his break and do what he wants but once Daniel is old enough he's going back to school and he's going to finish college successfully." she pursed her lips and smiled. "Also, Jackson's an ass. If he wants to give up on our relationship because he can't handle everything else, that's his problem. I don't have time for children." her eyes flitted to Daniel. "Except for Danny, I have all the time in the world for him... Yes I do." she lifted the sleeping baby and walked towards the kitchen with him, humming all the while. 

"Shit." Stiles spoke to the back of Derek’s head. "You should be a therapist."

Allison made a face. "I've been trying to get her to talk about it for weeks but she'd always just change the subject."

Derek leaned back on the ottoman, his back making contact with Stiles legs. Stiles brows furrowed. It wasn't like he was being sexually harassed or anything, plus it was just Derek so he didn't say anything.

"Lydia avoids anything that has to do with her directly but when it comes to other people she's confrontational. It's better to address her problems in a way that doesn't directly involve her and she'll acknowledge her issues when she's ready."

He could feel the vibrations as Derek spoke through his legs and it was weird. "uh, so now that that's been handled, how about some food?" He stood abruptly, pushing Derek forward as he did so.

The former alpha looked up at him with the same wild eyes he had when he was standing atop the stairs.

"Are you hungry?"

Stiles wasn't sure how to respond; mainly because the way Derek's voice sounded just then vaguely reminded him that he hadn't jacked off in a while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I lied sbout you figuring why Stiles calls Scott Paper Towel but I did bring in more Derek... at least I brought in Derek wisdom. To be honest, I had this chapter ready about 2 weeks ago but I could never bring myself to edit or even post it in its raw state. Too lazy, lucky for you today was a snow day. My midterm was cancelled and everything. Also, I was actually going to have Jackson in this story but the chapter just wrote itself and I was like... oh fuck. Okay. It's cool, he'll make a cameo. One more thing, even though this is a Sterek fic the other characters will be pretty prominent in their lives because it's the other characters that will make the relationship work.  
> Expect the next chapter to be relatively soon. As in it won't take me two months to get it up, as in just wait two weeks and it should be there. As in haha, I lied. I don't know when it's going to be up.  
> I love the snow.


	4. Bro Hug

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just an FYI: Jill is a slang term for masturbating. Also, last time I checked (never) 'awkwardest' isn't an actual word, the correct phrasing would be 'most awkward'. Stiles is just being silly, but Coq au Vin is an actually dish. :)

“Hey now, don’t touch that Danny,” Stiles swiped the paper towel away from his wriggling child and promptly moved the dispenser to another space. “That’s your godfather’s namesake.”

He tried not to think about the awkward dinner he had just experienced no more than 30 minutes ago. He tried his hardest to focus on the task at hand which was preparing dinner for his dad while keeping an eye on Daniel who was set on the table still confined within his car seat and yet still able to somehow wreak havoc. He tried, he really did. But Daniel’s near constant garbles that always seemed to borderline cries and the way he would toss away his stuffed monkey was distracting him from his task at hand and one thought would lead to another and he would be left thinking once again about the world’s awkwardest dinner.

“Awkwardest…” he turned to face his child. “Is that even a word?” Honey coloured eyes blinked at him before focusing elsewhere. Feeling only slightly rejected Stiles turned back to the cooked chicken he was chopping up. “It better be a word. If Coq au Vin is a real dish then awkwardest is a real word.”

* * *

Stiles was pleasantly surprised by the feast that was waiting in the kitchen, how he hadn’t smelt anything from the living room was a wonder. The table was set with quite a few dishes, some of them looked pretty fancy. He watched the pack’s faces and it must’ve been an everyday thing for them or something because he seemed to be the only one surprised. As everyone settled down into their own seats he found a sleeping Daniel strapped into a pale coloured rocking recliner. Lydia sat nearest to him and watched fondly. “Where...?”

“Hmm? Oh this old thing, Derek bought it a couple of days ago.”

Woah, okay. Thanks.

Derek pulled out the chair next to him and gestured to Stiles who was still standing. “We all bought a few things for Daniel.” Stiles felt a little relieved to hear that it was a group effort and not just Derek being weird and … just weird. But still, he sat in the seat the older man offered.

When he sat down he looked around the table at all the smiling faces, “Thanks guys, geez. If I knew you’d all be so excited for a kid I would have had one sooner.” He laughed a little, even though no one else really did. “Too soon?”

As everyone began passing around dishes Stiles couldn’t help but peer at Derek from his peripherals. Everyone was conversing and Derek seemed to be adding in his comments every so often. Sometimes his eyes would crinkle and his lips with quirk up at the ends. Occasionally they would part and he’d lick them and Stiles would remember again how it’s been too long since he’d last been acquainted with Jill. He sipped on his water hoping the cold fluids would flush down the obscene thoughts of Derek’s mouth and calm the fluttering in his stomach.

Must be hunger pangs.

“Stiles, would you like to try my famous cock oven?”

Okay, maybe not hunger pangs.

Stiles coughed, violently. The chatter around the table went quiet and everyone watched with curious eyes probably wondering if he was actually choking or just being Stiles. Derek rubbed at his back.

“Breathe, Stiles.”

He fanned himself with his shirt collar feeling his whole face heat up from what was probably a combination of lack of air and embarrassment. He waved Derek off and took another sip of his water, a smooth one this time. “I’m okay, wrong tube.” Everyone went back to their own devices save Scott who was watching his best friend warily. “Wh-What were you saying… before I mean…?” He really hoped he had heard wrong. If he hadn’t…

Wow, it was really hot.

“I was just asking you wanted to try my Coq au Vin…” Derek gestured to a plate that looked to contain chicken and some other vegetables. “It’s mainly chicken, and mushrooms braised with wine; a couple of spices and some other vegetables as well. The pack practically begs me to make it every week. I’m kind of famous for it here.”

* * *

 Stiles was so lost in thought he had almost nipped his finger with the knife and had to stop. Who even does that? Who makes Coq au Vin like it’s a normal thing and then proceed to say Coq au Vin. “It sounds like cock oven. Why couldn’t he just say chicken braised in wine? Why with the French… ugh, the French. Always with the love and the romance. No thanks. None of that. Not here.” He continued his rabid mutterings and placed the chicken delicately atop the couscous. He fiddled with its placement until his dad walked in and scared the life out of him.

“Geez Dad, do I need to give you a bell or something?”

* * *

There was only a couple days left before Stiles had to go back to school to take his exams. He hadn’t been studying much so he threw himself into his books as much as he could even with Daniel around. Sometimes the pack would come around and babysit while he studied; today in particular Scott was coming over. Stiles was a little sad he hadn’t been spending much actual time with his best friend but there would be time for that once exams were finished.

There was a knock at the door and Stiles knew it was Scott. He made his way over and opened it quickly earning a big grin from his friend. They had a bro hug and Stiles noticed Allison’s car on the curb. He waved and she gave a small smile back before speeding off.

That wasn’t rude at all.

“Hey man,” Stiles began once Scott had entered the house. He watched as his friend used his superior senses to find Daniel. “Is Allison… mad at me or something?”

Scott cuddled and made faces at Daniel, completely disregarding Stiles question. Which was weird because Stiles knew that Scott had heard him.

“Scott. Bro… honestly if she’s mad at me don’t even worry ab-”

“It’s not you Stiles.” Scott handed Daniel to Stiles and plopped onto the sofa before hunching over. He ran a hand over his face and then through his hair. He was stressed, Stiles could see as much. It looked like he’d been feeling this way for a while, Stiles only wished he noticed sooner. The true alpha gave him the classic kicked puppy look and Stiles was pretty confident he would have melted right there if it hadn’t been for the fact that he was holding his kid. “It’s me.”

Oh damn. “Scott, buddy, that is horribly clichéd and probably not the case. Allison is in total love with you man. You guys have been through so much shi…stuff, just to be together. What’s really wrong?” He settled down next to his friend and tried to ignore Daniels saliva soaking his shoulder.

Scott sighed heavily, “Allison… she doesn’t want kids.”

Stiles’ breath caught in his throat. Kids? Wow, that is a big step; A REALLY big step. Personally Stiles thinks they’re all a little too young for kids. Daniel let out a muffled hum just at that moment and Stiles had a distinct feeling that he was agreeing with him. “Scott…um, I can see now where the problem is but don’t you think it’s a little early for kids?” he gestured towards the baby in his arms.

Scott just watched Daniel with warm eyes and most likely a heavy heart. “Not for now Stiles, I know we’re young, I meant sometime in the future. Once we finished school and got a nice little place together and…” his head shifted upwards until the two best friends were making eye contact. Stiles knew that Scott liked kids, he also knew that Scott wanted kids, he just didn’t realize how much until now. The look that was in Scott’s eyes right at that moment, that was real, and it was serious and it was yearning.  Taking care of Daniel was one thing, but Scott wanted to have his own kids to take care of someday and Stiles was feeling for him because now he knows how rewarding it is to have a child. It was only a couple of weeks but Stiles was attached. He felt sympathy for Scott. He did.

“Do you know why?”

Scott looked away. “We-we talked about it Stiles. We talked about what we would do after all the crap that was going on in Beacon Hills. How, we would finish school, I would work with Deaton and she would work with her dad and we’d find a place. A nice place in the forest, close to the pack but also close to the town. Then we’d be a family.” He inhaled shakily. “The first time… the first time I brought up kids, she said we’d talk about it later, cross that bridge when it comes.  Back then, I didn’t think much of it, I thought yeah, I was getting a little ahead of myself we should take it slow.”

He was rubbing his eyes now. “But then you showed up with Daniel and she … she _saw_ Stiles. She saw how I interacted with him and how much I really wanted kids, and I guess it was too much for her because she came to me.” He paused. Stiles looked at his best friends shaking hands.

“She came to me Stiles and she said she didn’t want to have kids. I-I told her we didn’t need to have them, we could just adopt and she said no. She doesn’t have the confidence to take care of them, that’s what she said. She doesn’t want to bring a child into this world, _our_ world. She wouldn’t know how to care for them or what to say to them or anything.”

Stiles waited a beat. He was actually pretty surprised. He had seen Allison interact with kids before and although he can’t say she’s an enthusiastic as Scott, she definitely did have some motherly qualities about her. “Scott, do you know why she feels this way? What made her say that?”

“Her family. She said nothing good ever came from her family. She asked me how she would explain her family to our kid, I told her she wouldn’t have to explain anything by herself because _we_ would figure it out and _we_ would do it together! But she… she didn’t, she can’t see it that way. She doesn’t want to become her mom or her aunt and I told her that would never happen because she’s Allison and she knows what’s right and I told her that _she_ was the only good thing that came from her family and..”

He sat there and watched his friend spill out his heart. It was painful but Stiles was glad that Scott told him, better than keeping all that bottled in. He wouldn’t want his friend to suffer like that.

“…she’s not trying to hear it, Stiles…I don’t know what to do.”

“Honestly man, I want to help, but all I can think is for you two to talk it over some more but… give her some time.” He handed Daniel to Scott who was sniffling distinctly. “He’s really good at making people feel better…”

Scott gave a little laugh and watched Daniel smile at him, all gums. “Yeah, just like his dad.”

Awe, damn. Right in the feels. He leaned back onto the couch and rested his feet on the coffee table, kicking off his bio-chem textbook. They could wait; he had more important things to do today.

“You’re so lucky Stiles,” Scott mumbled. His gaze was still on Daniel.

Stiles smiled faintly, “Lucky to have Danny-boy over there?”

“I wasn’t talking about Danny; we already know how awesome he is. What I meant, was that you don’t have to worry about any problems like the one I have with Allison.”

Stiles nodded while he turned on the TV, keeping the volume low to hear Scott. “Because I already have a kid, so there would be no negotiation. You want me, you want Danny too.”

“I was going to say you’re lucky you already have someone who wants to be a family with you, but that works too.”

Stiles is pretty sure there’s a piece of their conversation that he missed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, it's been a while. School is pretty much done, I have one more exam and then an essay to hand in by friday and i'll be free! Look forward to updates.  
> I'm sure you can figure out who it is that wants to be a family with Stiles. But don't you feel sorry for Scott? Ah, so unfortunate, I wonder if he can work things out with Allison...  
> Also, if anyone has ever had Coq au Vin, please, let me know your opinion on how it tastes. If you made it yourself, what kind of wine did you use? I'm curious.


	5. Delicate Matters

Stiles looked at the discarded textbooks on the floor and decided that he didn’t _need_ to study today. He could study tomorrow…

“Scott could you just repeat that last part, I didn’t quite get that.” He tapped on his chin impatiently as Scott seemed to try and remember what it was that he said. “The part about having someone who already wants to be … a family. With me. And my infant. That is what you mean right? Just so we’re clear.”

Scott didn’t even look in Stiles direction, although Stiles was getting used to that since Danny showed up in his life. He got all the attention.

“Derek didn’t tell you?”

Derek? What did Derek have to do with this? Did he know who wanted to be a family with- Oh, _Oh._ “Derek didn’t tell me anything Scott which is exactly why I’m asking.” He tried to reel Scott in so he could hear what he wasn’t sure of.

Scott gave Stiles a look. “I thought he would have told you by now.”

Stiles pursed his lips and did his best to keep himself from raising his voice. “Tell me what buddy?”

His best friend leaned back and assessed Stiles’ face. “You know…” then he leaned in and raised his brows suggestively.

This was it; this was what Stiles was anticipating, the reveal, the confirmation. He leaned in as well and their foreheads almost touched. His eyes were narrowed and his face pensive. “I know…?”

Scott clapped Stiles on the back. “Derek likes you bro. You know that.”

Stiles leaned back into the couch and turned the words around in head. This is the reveal that he’d been waiting for. He had the thought and it was just confirmed but now that he actually heard it aloud he wasn’t sure how it made him feel…about anything. It was a surprise but not enough to rock his world or anything. Yeah, don’t get him wrong or anything, he thought Derek was attractive… he still thinks Derek is attractive. Last week’s dinner was proof of that. But he didn’t really have any feelings for the guy. Besides admiration at being a badass and a bit of contempt because he was such a jerk in the past. Yeah he held grudges. Sue him.

“Hey man, you okay? You like kind of… fine actually. I thought you’d be doing some kind of happy dance or something by now.”

Stiles just looked at Scott. “Why would you think that?”

Scott shrugged and went to place Daniel in his little play gym where the sound of rattling soon filled the room. “It’s not really a secret that you like Derek.”

Woah, hold on. Stiles sputtered momentarily. “Dude! How did you come to that conclusion? I don’t like Derek. I don’t hate him either but I definitely don’t _like_ him!” Stiles knew his voice had raised and his arms were flailing because of Scotts raised brows but very amused smile.

Scott laughed a little putting a hand on Stiles’ shoulder. “You know I’m a werewolf right?” Stiles rolled his eyes, unaware of what that had to do with their current conversation. “I can hear your heartbeat Stiles. Every time we’re around Derek, or you look at him a certain way or he looks at you a certain way…”

He was beginning to understand where this was going.

Scott cleared his throat and folded his arms and gave Stiles a knowing glance. “Do I need to mention my heightened sense of smell? Last week when you two met…” He shook his head and clicked his tongue. “Dude, that was like walking into your room that one time after you had a ‘marathon’”

Oh God. Stiles’ arm flailing came back. “Okay, okay, that’s enough! I get it.” Scott looked relatively pleased with the confession. “So, I get a little excited when I see Derek.”

“A little?”

Stiles ignored that. “That’s just physical attraction Scott. I don’t feel anything much more than that. You can’t tell your wolfy powers picked up on any of that.”

“ _Well_ …”

“Scott.”

Scott held up his hands in surrender. “You’re right, but the only reason you don’t feel anything for Derek is because you’ve never given him a chance. You guys never hang out away from pack gatherings. Has he even been here at all since you came back?” Stiles had to think to himself for a moment. Lydia had been over, Isaac had been over, Kira and Malia even swung by yesterday. The only people he hadn’t seen had been Allison; although now he knows why, Boyd and Erica; but he just assumes they hadn’t returned from their bonding and Derek… who he had no real excuse for.

He scratched at the back of his head trying to think of a valid reason as to why Derek hadn’t visited. “No, but I’m sure he was just busy.”

“Right. I’m sure.”  Scott readjusted himself and unmuted the TV prepared to do nothing for the next undetermined amount of hours.

Well hell. Stiles supposes it won’t be the worst thing in the world.  He turned to Scott and before he could even get the words out he sees his best friend rising from the couch.

“I’m leaving, I’m leaving. When you talk to Derek be gentle. I know he’s the big bad wolf and all…not that you’re little red riding hood or anything. That would be weird, alt-”

“Bro.

“Right, right, the point is you just have to be delicate with him. He’s been through a lot in the whole relationship department… you know.”

Yeah he did.

-

Stiles trudged up the few steps to the Hale house with baby and car seat in hand and pushed open the already for some reason unlocked door. The door swung open quietly and revealed Boyd lounging on a couch with a book in his hand. No one else, although Derek could just be upstairs or in the kitchen or… somewhere.

“Derek’s not here Stiles.” Boyd flipped a page of his book and continued to lounge.

The words that Stiles had carefully constructed on the drive here in order to not break Derek’s delicate little heart had quickly disintegrated into nothingness. “Uhh.” He hadn’t planned for this.

“He’ll be back soon. You’re welcome to wait.”

Stiles stood in the open doorway and turned the option around in his head until he realized something. “I’m not here for Derek!” it was pitiful, it really was. It also made him wonder how many other people knew about Derek’s feelings and his physical attraction.

Boyd actually looked at him with a neutral expression on his face. “Then-.”

Stiles was just having bouts of word vomit today. “I came to see you!”

Boyd smiled this time and set his book aside as he sat up. “Any reason?”

Oh shoot, he got him there. Daniel chose this particular moment to gargle and Stiles suddenly became aware of him. “To show you my kid.” He lifted the car seat and smiled enthusiastically to sell his unconvincing lie.

Boyd didn’t seem to mind. He sat up and motioned to the ottoman that was adjacent to his own couch. Stiles sat down and handed Daniel, car seat and all, to him. He took this moment to really notice how fearless his kid actually was. Daniel never got startled or cried or even showed the clearest sign of discomfort no matter who he came across, or rather whoever came across him. Not that Stiles expected Daniel to be scared of Boyd, the man had trouble harming flies. He laughed a little remembering an incident that had occurred in their last year of high school.

“Gonna share with the class?” Boyd shook his pinkie which Danny had grasped and was trying to devour.

Stiles leaned forward, his initial reason for coming to the Hale house easily forgotten. Instead he settled into the space like it was any other time and he was just hanging out with the pack. “Remember that one time Erica was gonna kill that fly and you just wouldn’t let her?” Boyd smirked a bit and Stiles laughed even harder. “You almost trashed the house trying to catch the damn thing without killing it, then you let it out and it came right back in!”

“I remember how she went crazy and smashed the poor fly in her fist.”

“Dude you looked so distraught! Like Derek kicked your puppy or something!”

They both sat there and laughed a little while longer, basking in the memory. Stiles felt his leg jiggling and he began tapping on the cushion of the ottoman. He looked around the house and cleared his throat several times.

“Derek would never do something like that though.” Stiles blurted. Boyd just hummed. “Kick a puppy I mean. He can be a jerk sometimes, yeah, but he’s a good guy.” He waited for some confirmation and cleared his throat again once he realized he wasn’t going to get one.

Boyd met his eyes just before he could speak again. “Hold on Stiles. Erica you don’t have to eavesdrop.”

Erica?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I really struggled with the second half of this chapter. I don't know why...my writing style is just not flowing. But because I've been acting like a neglectful parent with this story I'll get another update in by Friday. Don't look forward to it, it'll probably be really crappy.


	6. Finally DTR

Derek ignored Peter’s fiddling with his radio. Usually he wouldn’t let anyone go anywhere near the radio in his car but this wasn’t anyone, it was Peter. Plus they were coming back from their _bonding_ time. Not like Erica and Boyd’s bonding. No. No. Just No. It was a different kind of bonding that was only done when Peter began to slip. It was a survival thing as much as it was a family thing.

Every once in a while, a very long while, whenever Peter’s facades began unraveling and his scents gave way to each other Derek and Peter would disappear somewhere away from the pack and fix things.

Derek wasn’t sure who else in the pack noticed Peter’s complex scents or the way they were set up. The man had layers upon layers to himself. There was the overlaying Peter scent which consisted of sass and smart-alecky arrogance and mischief. This scent was the real Peter, or at least it was the real Peter before the fire. Now this scent was just a cover-up. Under the cover-up was a constant anger that Derek could always scent, as long as he knew what he was looking for, he could find this anger. Once the cover-up slipped there was the anger and that wasn’t the problem. The anger meant that Derek should make a disappearing act with Peter before things got really bad. Really bad was under the anger. It was a cloying, nauseating scent that Derek truly believed physically hurt his uncle. It was a kind of despair. Once Peter’s core is exposed Derek knows the trip will have to be more than a couple of days.

That’s what had happened about a week ago and Derek been away with Peter ever since. He had been so distracted he hadn’t even realized how bad his uncle was getting. It had only been when Isaac had come to him asking why Peter kept missing meetings that Derek had thought to investigate. It was true even though they all lived together he hadn’t seen the man for more than a week. When Derek went to his uncle’s door and found it locked he felt a little weirded out. He had to get his copy of the key to Peter’s attached home. When he opened the door and a heart-wrenchingly despaired scent reached him, Derek had realized what it was and he didn’t even bother packing his bags, he just grabbed his wallet and told Peter to get in the car. His uncle rarely ever listened to him, but that day Peter had given him a scornful look that gripped at Derek’s heart and he had just shuffled into the car.

They had taken care of things and now, Derek inhaled, and Peter was all sass and mischief with the tiniest bit of anger. No more nauseating sadness. He’d have to be more attentive from now on. How had the changes escaped him?

He made a sharp left when it occurred to him how exactly he hadn’t noticed.

Stiles had come back from school, only briefly though and he had a kid and Derek was a little- maybe a lot- angry. But then he realized he had no right to be and because it’s not Stiles’ fault that Derek has a one-sided lo-crush. So he went out with the pack and picked up a couple of things that would be appropriate for the kid and he put on a relatively pleasant face and acted like he didn’t at all mind that Stiles was in a relationship with some random girl.

Then he had found out that although the girl was random, Stiles wasn’t with her. She disappeared. Derek thought about getting someone to track her down but thought against it because Stiles… he seemed fine.

The kid was cute too. Daniel.

He pulled up in front of the house and sat in the car going over how he was so distracted that he hadn’t noticed his uncle’s deteriorating state. The dinner from that day had definitely played a part. He didn’t know what Stiles was thinking about that night but the smells coming off him made it a lot harder for Derek to act sane. At least he seemed to enjoy the Coq Au Vin. Derek worked extra hard on it that day, knowing Stiles would come over. He was so sure Stiles wouldn’t like it until he began to make obscene noises the moment he started eating. Derek was pretty pleased with himself for not losing his self-control and popping a boner like some 16 year-old.  

“Whatever are you thinking about?”

Peter’s amused drawl startled Derek out of his thoughts, only a little. “Nothing.”

Peter unclipped his seatbelt and even though Derek was looking straight ahead he could see the grin stretching across his uncle’s face. “You know nephew, you never were good at lying.”

“Peter.” He started. “This can’t happen again.”

The former alpha was silent, no more jokes or wit.

“You need to tell me next time you feel like you’re… I hardly even noticed.” It was true, he hardly noticed and if he didn’t he wasn’t sure what Peter’s condition would be right now.

“But you did.” The response was light. “Anyways, this won’t happen again.” Peter’s voice was full of conviction.

Derek wasn’t so sure. He started to speak but his uncle was already opening the car door, back to his usual self.

“Your boyfriend’s here by the way.”

Huh?

He watched his uncle flounce away, leaving the passenger door open and the trunk full of shit for Derek to take out by himself. He could hear the laughter from inside the house die down once Peter made his entrance. He listened to Erica and Boyd remove themselves from the situation and he watched them come out from the front door. Erica winked at him as she passed the car and Boyd nodded. He blinked at them entirely concerned with the words being exchanged between Stiles and Peter. His phone vibrated in his pocket and he quickly made a movement to retrieve it.

**Erica**

**Wow Derek, eavesdropping! I knew I picked it up from somewhere ;)**

He read the text and immediately put the phone on silent so it would be easier to ignore the barrage of text messages he knows Erica is going to send him. He would only listen for a little while longer. There was no harm.

The house was quiet with the exception of a rattling coming from what he assumed was Daniel’s car seat. Then he heard a shift.

“Stiles.” He listened to the sound of Peter sinking into an armchair. Stiles swallowed. He could imagine Peter grinning even harder because if Derek could hear that then so could he. “You and I, we have history.”

“If by history you mean you being a complete psychopath and ruining the lives of my friends and myself then yes.” Stiles folded his arms and probably rolled his eyes, Derek could imagine it happen.

“I think the word you’re looking for is enhanced.”

Stiles grunts. “What do you want Peter?”

Peter hums thoughtfully obviously aware of what he wants to say, just delaying to watch Stiles’ reaction. “I’d like to put the past behind us.”

“I don’t understand.”

Peter shifts and speaks again. “Let’s start fresh.”

“Why?”

“You think Derek’s getting the short end of the stick because what? You have a child?”

There was only silence and Derek could feel his heart attempting to break free from his chest and die. To say he was mortified with what his uncle was saying was a complete and total understatement. He was embarrassed too. His stomach was in knots and he just wished that Stiles would play dumb and pretend that he had no idea what Peter was talking about but at the sound of his heart, Derek knew that Stiles knew.

“Peter-.”

“Spare me.” Peter stands up and moves closer to Stiles, how close Derek isn’t sure. He wants to know, but he can’t expose himself now.  “ _You_ are getting the short end of the stick Stilinksi. Once you two get over yourselves and finally DTR or whatever you idiots call it _then_ you’ll have a lot more than a baby on your plate.”

No, Nope. Derek can’t wait any longer. He practically materialized onto the porch and quickly calmed himself before opening the front door and acting like he was at least a little surprised to see Stiles.

Stiles looked at him with wide eyes and a gape. Peter is hovering over Stiles ridiculously close, not even turning his head to acknowledge his nephew.

“Derek. Hi.”

“Stiles, I thought you had exams.” He found Danny wiggling around in his seat.

Stiles eyes flickered from him to Peter and he started to frown. “Yeah, I’m leaving in a couple of days…”

Derek nods a bit and closes the front door behind him. He sits down and realizes the seat is warm so Peter was probably sitting here before. “Erica was just telling me the pack should have another dinner since they missed the last one.” He watches the frown flip. If Stiles thought Derek was eavesdropping before, which he was, he obviously doesn’t think so anymore.

“That’s a great idea seeing as I missed it too.” Peter is finally looking at Derek a small smirk on his face. “You should make some of that cock oven you’re so good at.”

Derek gives Peter a sharp look and corrects him. “It’s Coq Au Vin, Peter.”

Peter places a hand on his chest and feigns surprise. “I knew something didn’t sound right.” Then he flounces off again leaving Derek alone with Stiles.

He looks at Stiles who’s looking at the coffee table. “How’s studying goi-”

“Do you want to go out?”

His breath gets caught in his throat and he’s pretty sure Stiles can very clearly see the shock on his face. His brows furrow as he tries to remember how to breathe because he did not at all expect this to happen ever.

“Yes.”

It looked like Stiles’ turn to be shocked because he just sat there and didn’t even blink. Derek almost wanted to reach out and make sure that he was still alive but that would be redundant because he could still hear his heart but why wasn’t he responding…?

“Okay.”

Okay? That’s it? “Okay.” Derek repeated.

“Bye.” Stiles stood up and scooped up Danny and may as well have been a werewolf because one second he was there and the next Derek could hear the jeep revving up and driving away.

He lifted a hand and held it to his face. The clammy skin of his palm felt strange on his heated cheek. He knew what just happened but he… didn’t? He rubbed his palms on his jeans and stood up. He needed to work out or something.

“Handled like a pro.”

Of course his uncle would choose now to show up. “Peter, not now.”

Peter laughed. “Yes Derek, now.” He seemingly pulled a small vile from air. “You need this.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was from Derek's POV which came a lot easier to me than Stiles. It also has a lot of Peter because aside from Malia who I'm telling you right now, you guys will never see, Peter is Derek's only family. Peter has some kind of PTSD and it has him really messed up and Derek is more or less his keeper. I just want you to see how Derek's relationship with Peter is.


End file.
